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Bikepacking/Biketouring Marinduque – Part 1

Maniwaya island in Marinduque province.
Dawn breaks on Maniwaya Island in Marinduque. This province is rich in tradition and natural beauty with some of the friendliest locals.

Marinduque has been described by some as the “heart” of the Philippines. If you look at the country’s map, you will see that this island province is located at the Philippines’ geographic center. You may also see that the island is shaped like the organ that pumps blood in our chest. Thus, “heart of the Philippines.”

And what a beautiful heart it is. It’s no wonder a lot of writers get sentimental and all.

Mt. Malindig in Marinduque. Bikepacking bag borrowed from Master Dru, who holds a 10th-degree blackbelt in bikepacking

Game of Thrones fans will look at Mt. Malindig and get reminded of the scene where Drogon perched on cliffs overlooking the Dothraki sea. The palm-fringed beaches meanwhile are everyone’s idea of what a tropical paradise is supposed to be. Marinduqueños meanwhile are some of the friendliest locals you will ever meet.

From January 18 to 20 2018, Travel Up and I biked around Marinduque.

Before 2017 came to a close, I said I would try bikepacking in the following year. For a couple of years now I’ve been stalking people on the FB group “Bikepacking Philippines” and would always drip with envy while looking at photos of their trips to scenic islands and high mountain passes. I promised myself that 2018 would be the year I finally get to join the ranks of the bikepackers.

Many provincial buses have compartments large enough to store bikes

But I had no idea where to go. Fortunately, my travel-addicted ex-girlfriend knew just where she wanted to get lost next — Marinduque.  And as every gentleman who has gotten hitched knows: you have no choice but to go where your woman tells you to go. And thus I found myself pedaling with her to the Jac Liner bus terminal in Kamias QC at around 11 in the evening, to go to the Lucena City port where we hoped to catch the 2:30 AM ferry to Marinduque.

After 2.5 hours of desperately trying to sleep while the bus played grungy hits from the 90s, we arrived at the Lucena City port. We just missed the 2:00 AM boat and had to wait for next one which was departing at 3:30 AM.

Biking into RORO ferry
Bringing the bike onto the RORO ferry

It was drizzling that morning and I was worried that our chillaxing bike trip would turn into a weather sufferfest. Worse, I had visions that the waters were going to be choppy, and turn the ferry trip into something like Enchanted Kingdom’s Anchors Away ride.

What can I say? I’m always paranoid that the worst things will happen during a trip.

But after an uneventful 2.5 hours, the captain announced that we were nearing Marinduque. I looked outside and the weather seemed perfect. The sun was just about to shine and it seemed that our first foray into bikepacking was being blessed by the spirits of the island.

Balanacan Port in Mogpog, Marinduque
We arrived at the Balanacan Port in Mogpog, Marinduque at around 6 a.m.

Before stepping foot in Marinduque I only had the vaguest of ideas on what to expect on the island. I knew it was famous for the Moriones Festival, where locals dressed up as ancient Romans and Jews during Holy Week, and reenacted the crucifixion of Christ.

I also knew it was the site of the biggest man-made environmental disasters in Philippine history. On March 24, 1996, the mine tailings dam of Marcopper burst dumping millions of tons of toxic waste into the Boac River, killing wildlife and contaminating rivers and coastal areas for years to come.

While Marinduque today still bears the scars from that man-made disaster, it was nice to see that the island was recovering.

What a view! It was a chore getting up here but well worth the effort.

As we pushed our bikes off the ferry, what greeted us was a beautiful bay whose waters looked fit enough to swim in. As we pedaled across Marinduque’s beautiful roads, there was greenery everywhere. Most of the roads were also well-paved and suitable for even road bikes with skinny tires.

At the start of the trip, I was unsure whether my hybrid Frankenbike 29er MTB frame shorn with 38c wheels would be up to the challenge. I was wondering if I should have brought my burlier steel mountain bike.

But Marinduque’s roads turned out to be pleasant enough to ride on semi-skinny tires.

The plan was to spend 3 days and 2 nights on a loop around Marinduque. The first day would be the longest ride, which would take us from the port town of Mogpog to the white beaches of Torrijos. The second day would be spent riding from Torrijos to Santa Cruz, then we’d take a boat to Maniwaya Island, camp there and soak in the beach vibe. On the third day, we would travel back from Santa Cruz to Mogpog and finally back to QC. This was going to be a chill ride where we’d get to enjoy the sights and sounds of the heart of the archipelago.

Bikepacking Marinduque
Not a bad view to start the adventure. Not bad at all.

Our first stop from Mogpog was the town of Boac–the capital of Marinduque. We hadn’t eaten anything since leaving QC and needed to fuel our guts and legs for the long 80+ kilometers ahead.

Boac is also the site of the island’s largest church, the Boac Cathedral, which is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception. The cathedral sits atop a hill overlooking the Poblacion as the church also doubled as a fortress during the 1800s, where residents sought shelter during attacks by Moro raiders, according to local writer and historian Eli Obligacion.

If you want some peace and quiet and a better glimpse into the spirituality of Marinduqueños, the Boac cathedral is a good place to start.

The historic Cathedral in the town of Boac.
Inside the Boac Cathedral

We had breakfast at a cozy and rustic eatery called Kusina sa Plaza hear the Poblacion’s public park. It was an old colonial era house whose downstairs were converted into a restaurant. Just very cool.

I saw a fellow biker in the Plaza and we greeted each other, as bikers do, as bikers should.

Longsilog and Coke, the breakfast of adventurers :p

After a quick breakfast, it was time to pedal on to the town of Torrijos, where we planned to stay the night. It was going to be a really long ride and Travel Up and I looked forward to some seriously speedy pedal time. Just kidding, trips like these are meant to be savored like fine dining, not fast food.

Kusina sa Plaza in Boac offers good food. The place looks great too!

A curious thing about Marinduque’s roads is that certain segments were so wide that they seemed out of place for a province that hardly saw any traffic. There were long stretches of four-lane highways where the only things moving were our bicycles and the occasional motorcycle or tricycle.  A local resident however assured us that during holy week, these roads were packed.

The meandering open roads of Marinduque. This place would be perfect for a Gran Fondo.
So cool to be able to rest somewhere near the sea.

After a few more hours of leisurely pedaling, we decided to stop for lunch at the town of Buenavista. We looked around for a nice place to eat, but the town didn’t have a lot of options. Luckily we stumbled on Curba Bar and Grill, which had a nice artsy vibe and served ice cold beer.

Curba Bar and Grill in Buenavista, Marinduque
Curba Grill in Buenavista, Marinduque

If you haven’t had any sleep and you’ve been pedaling for hours, ice cold beer knocks you out pretty quickly, especially after a good meal. We took a quick nap in one of the huts of the resto to get our heads in order, and felt refreshed and ready for the long stretch of riding ahead.

When you’ve had just 2 hours of sleep, a bottle of San Mig Light can knock you out ina few minutes. Nothing like a nap to get you recharged.

Along the way we passed the coast where we sighted the abandoned Bellaroca island resort. It stood in the distance like a cluster of ancient Roman ruins transplanted onto a tropical setting. Locals said during its heyday, which was barely a few years ago, millionaires were getting ferried there via helicopters to stay in rooms that cost P50,000 a night. Now, only security guards stay there.

Bellaroca as seen from the road

Not sure if what they were telling was true, but they also said that while the resort has already been padlocked, it was still possible to rent the island for some swanky event. They also said that you could rent a boat and sail around the island. Since we were on a schedule, Kara and I decided to skip it.

This exclusive resort for the ultra rich now lies unused.

After another hour of pedaling, we sighted Mt. Malindig. This has got to be one of the most picturesque mountains in the Philippines. From the road, it looked like a chunk of the Scottish highland cliffs that went astray and lost itself on Marinduque. I would love to hike up that mountain someday.

Mt. Malindig isn’t a very tall mountain, but it looks real badass.

The sun was already setting when we made it past the hills of Buenavista. By the time we reached Torrijos, the sun had completely set and we needed to use our bike lights to navigate. We kept checking Google Maps to see if we were anywhere near the beaches of Torrijos.

We would love to climb this mountain some day. Anybody know if it’s bikable?

It was starting to drizzle when we finally reached Poctoy White Beach. Our bones were aching and our legs barely had any strength left in them. At Rendezvous Cafe, which was right beside the beach, we savored a dinner of shrimps and tortang talong and a few bottles of San Miguel pale pilsen.

We could have taken the shorter cross country route, but we just couldn’t pass up on the coastal road trip
The sun starts to set and we are still several kilometers away from Poctoy White Beach
Inabot na ng gabi sa daan 🙂
Dinner after a day of pedaling

Meanwhile the drizzle turned into a downpour outside. Kara (Travel Up) and I got some much-needed rest and were happily snoring a few minutes later.

TO BE CONTINUED IN MARINDUQUE BIKEPACKING 2

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